Tifosi Optics

THOUGH JOE AND ELIZABETH EARLEY launched Tifosi Optics in 2003 with just 24 SKUs, their eyewear gained an immediate following. The couple opened 500 retailers within the first nine months and added 1000 more in year two. Today, more than 35,000 retailers across 35 countries carry Tifosi products, including many U.S. running stores.

“Run specialty has always been one of the core markets for our wholesale distribution,” Joe Earley says. “The exciting thing for Tifosi is that we see this as one of our major growth opportunities still today with the emergence of the lifestyle products and the increased focus on the [optical] category.”

BALEGA – THE ZULU WORD for “To Move with Speed” – began on the back of napkin in a small South African town. The vision was bold and daring: to create the best performance sock on the planet and to do so with a philanthropic bent.

From its first two products, the Enduro and the Hidden Comfort, Balega now features nine sock models varying in thickness, cushioning and design elements to meet runners’ demanding needs.

On the charitable front, Balega helps the Ethembeni School in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa, providing funding for annual student scholarships, a wheelchair friendly school bus, a therapy playpark and swimming pool. In addition, the company’s Grit & Grace collection supports the work of Breast Cancer Prevention Partners, while every sale of its Enduro Physical Training Crew sock generates a 50-cent contribution to Homes for Our Troops.

UK-BASED INOV-8 HAS MADE significant gains in the running marketplace since its 2003 debut, especially among the world’s trail runners. The company captured significant attention with its introduction of Graphene – an insanely strong, yet lightweight, thin, flexible and grippy material – into the outsoles and midsoles of key trail running models like the Trailfly G 270 and the Trailfly Ultra G 300 Max.

Now operating in more than 50 countries – and gaining swelling attention in the U.S. market, in particular – inov-8 and its 100 percent vegan footwear has been favored by the likes of Bear Grylls and Superman himself, Henry Cavill.